


Sons Of Fate

by Rovelae



Category: Rockman | Mega Man - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-17
Updated: 2017-02-17
Packaged: 2018-09-25 04:02:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 871
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9801788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rovelae/pseuds/Rovelae
Summary: What if Mega Man's fight against Doctor Wily took as heavy a toll on his mind as his body?Protoman / Blues helps his brother overcome a PTSD/anxiety attack of sorts.





	

It wasn't the first time he'd had to drag Rock out of a collapsing fortress. It wasn't even the first time he'd brought the blue 'roid home with only two units of energy left, his arm cannon hanging limp at his side, muttering something feverishly about not needing any help. That seemed to be a common thread in the grand tangle that was this war: Rock would play the Blue Bomber, the hero, the unstoppable force that would save mankind from the psychotic Doctor Wily. He'd charge off into the Skull Fortress, blast a few vital support columns, then get himself beaten within an inch of his life....

Blues exhaled and tipped his head back, letting the last rays of sunset wash over him. He had hoped to get a private word in with Doctor Light before leaving, but judging by the incoherent screaming drifting out from the laboratory, the doc had enough on his mind already.

Rock never mentioned his nightmares, but sounds like that made it obvious they were getting worse. _Guess post-traumatic stress will do that to you,_ Blues added to himself with a humorless smirk.

The 'roid retrieved his trench coat and dropped silently to the grass, straightening his scarf. His hand hovered briefly over the teleportation device set into his arm, but some emotion he'd forgotten the name of tugged at his core, and he glanced back at the house. Pity? Interesting.

Blues moved to the front door and slipped inside undetected, his fingers brushing lightly against the wall as he moved toward the lab. In a way, he supposed, he did miss this place and the life it offered to him. Family. Safety. Belonging. But as much as he wanted to believe otherwise, that life didn't belong to him. That was before, that was … some version of himself he didn't recognize. A part of him that had died a long time ago.

No, let Rock have his family. It seemed to be one of the few things keeping him within the margins of sanity at the moment.

Speaking of which....

“...just need to finish the recharging process, and you'll be stable. You've been through a lot today. Do you want anything?”

“I – no, I-I'll be fine,” came Rock's shaky voice, obviously anything but fine. “I'm sorry to wake you, Doctor. I'll be okay.”

“Son, you know you can talk to me about this - ”

“Stop. Please, just....” Rock took a deep breath before continuing. “I just … need some rest.”

Doctor Light sighed. “Of course, Rock. Get some sleep.”

“Good night, Doctor.”

Blues pressed himself into a small alcove in the wall as Doctor Light left the main laboratory. The human walked straight past him, oblivious, rubbing his tired eyes and trying unsuccessfully to stifle a yawn. His oldest son watched him go, then turned and glided into the laboratory.

Rock lay prone on one of the many tables, his face buried in a pillow as best he could with so many cords and wires sticking out of his chest. Blues could see him trembling from the other side of the room.

He closed his eyes for a moment, then, “Rock.”

No response.

“Mega Man,” he tried.

Rock visibly flinched, but instead of looking up, he curled in on himself, hugging the pillow close as if he could disappear into it.

Blues moved closer, perching on the table at his brother's side. He remained silent.

“I keep seeing them,” Rock mumbled after a time, his voice muffled by the pillow.

“Which ones?”

“All of them.” The younger Light Number sat up slowly, hanging his legs off the edge of the table. “Tornado Man – he – he was so _angry._ I kept telling him I didn't want to fight, but he kept attacking. I had to – to – and then, Jewel Man – the way he _looked_ at me. Like he'd do anything to stop me from stopping _him._ And Hornet Man, and Plug Man, and Splash Woman! All they wanted was to _live!”_

“Hey, hey....” Blues put a gentle hand on his brother's shoulder. “Just breathe. It's all right.”

No, of course it wasn't. Rock was a labworker, for goodness' sake. A child forced into a role that would break a grown man.

“I couldn't tell Doctor Light. He doesn't get it. He's never....” Rock trailed off, his blue eyes shut tightly.

“He's not a soldier,” Blues finished for him.

“Blues, their eyes! I still see their _eyes!”_ Rock tangled his fingers in his black hair, leaning his elbows on his knees and trembling. “I can't do this. I'm a killer. I'm just like him....”

“You're nothing like him.” It was an awkward hug; in fact, with so many wires between them, it hardly counted as such. “Listen to me, Rock. You are nothing like Doctor Wily.”

His younger brother sobbed quietly into his trench coat, clutching the fabric with shaking hands.

“I j-just … don't want to be Mega Man anymore,” Rock whispered.

 

Doctor Light returned in the morning to find Rock fast asleep in his brother's arms, one hand still holding onto Blues's yellow scarf. The first Light Number looked up at his creator, his eyes cold behind his dark visor.

“Don't send him out there again,” Blues said.

**Author's Note:**

> Also posted on DeviantART under the same name. Mega Man and the associated characters are (c) Keiji Inafune and Capcom. The story belongs to me.


End file.
